The present invention relates to a photographic system capable of controlling a video quality of a camera device connected to a communication network based on a position of an operation terminal, and more particularly, to a technique capable of controlling a fixed camera device serving as a live camera by a remote operation from an operation terminal held by an operator, which is a person to be photographed through the communication network to take a commemorative image of the operator, which includes a background image without infringing on the portrait rights of others.
When commemorative photographing is to be performed by a handheld camera, it is obvious that a camera is directed to a subject by a photographer. In this case, a third person who exists around the subject and does not like to be photographed leaves the place or turns the face in the direction so that his face cannot be photographed. Such a slight action can avoid the person being photographed. In addition, the action is conventionalized. As a result, there is generally no case where the action leads to a problem of infringement on the portrait right, which includes the right to refuse photographing and the right to refuse the use of images. The right to refuse photographing is a right that a portrait image of a person is not taken without permission of the person. The right to refuse the use of images is a right that the taken portrait image is not freely released by another person.
In recent years, one of use examples of a live camera that becomes popular is a service (broadband service), in which the images of tourist spots are taken at a visually valuable angle and distributed for tourist use.
The distributed images in the service are used for the case where video users (users) located in remote places obtain various real time information including weather information or congestion state information, and flowering information on cherry blossoms and colored leaves on the tourist spots and their vicinities where cameras are placed. The images are normally distributed with a suitable quality within a range in which the portrait right of a person located in an area to be photographed is not infringed.
With respect to such video images taken by the live cameras, locations where the cameras are placed and camera angles thereof are important. Therefore, when an image of a person traveling to a tourist spot can be taken (by self-photographing) together with a scene (background) with an improved image quality, high-value commemorative photographs clearly different from photographs that taken by the handheld camera can be obtained. In contrast to this, placing a camera at an angle for obtaining high-value commemorative photographs in a tourist spot and commonly using the placed camera as the live camera, is effective as a camera use method.
However, when high-resolution photographing, which can be used for commemorative photographing is performed by a photographic system using the live camera or the like, it becomes necessary to technically avoid the infringement on both the right to refuse photographing and the right to refuse the use of images, which are the portrait rights, so this causes a problem.
In the photographic system for self-photographing, it is effective that a mobile terminal such as a mobile telephone whose function is being improved is used as means that controls the live camera (fixed camera) or checking a video image from the view points of a widespread state of the mobile terminal and user's operational experiences.
However, in a photographic system for self-photographing using the mobile terminal, the mobile terminal can access the network from any place and camera control can be performed from remote places for photographing except the self-photographing. Therefore, according to a related unlimited access authorization method or a related unified access authorization method for registered users, a specified person in the field of view of the fixed camera can be viewed by the general public or third persons, so it is liable to infringe the portrait right (right to refuse the use of images). When the fixed camera is located at a distance from a position where the subject stands, it is liable to infringe the portrait right (right to refuse photographing) of a person who enters the field of view of the camera without knowing to be photographed.
When a photographic system for self-photographing, in which the fixed live camera which is connected to a communication network such as the Internet and can be operated by remote control is used, and commemorative self-photographing is performed at an angle at which photographing cannot be performed by a handheld camera (for example, an angle from the fixed live camera, which is provided at a higher place such as the top of a surrounding building) is to be studied, the following related techniques can be listed.
(1) In an image information transmitting and receiving system described in JP 2004-40736 A, when a subject-operator holding a terminal moves closer to a photographic spot of a camera, the operator permits self-photographing while viewing a preview image.
According to this technique, a person who enters the field of view of the camera without knowing to be photographed is photographed together with the operator, so the infringement on the portrait right (right to refuse photographing) cannot be avoided.
According to this technique, when the subject-operator enters the vicinity of a photographic target area, a photographic operation can be performed. However, there is no mechanism for controlling a quality against access from the outside of the photographic target area, so a specific photographic system for only the photographic target area has to be provided.
There is no system in which a mechanism for determining the position of the subject-operator is operated in conjunction with, for example, a zoom function of the camera. Therefore, it is difficult to improve the determination precision as to whether or not the subject enters the photographic target area while the free operation of the camera is permitted.
(2) According to a technique described in JP 2005-51552 A, a mechanism for sending a notice indicating that the photographing is performed by a remote operation to the surroundings of a remote operatable camera is provided. Therefore, a person close to the camera can be prevented from being photographed without knowing to be photographed.
However, in the case where the distant camera is to be controlled for self-photographing, even when a notice indicating photographing is sent to the surroundings of the distant camera, an effect is not obtained.
(3) According to a technique described in JP 2001-136514 A, a part of an image taken by a network camera is subjected to low-resolution conversion to protect the right of a subject. However, there is no image quality control mechanism corresponding to a user accessing the camera, with the result that photographs obtained by performing the low-resolution conversion on the part of the image are not suitable as commemorative photographs for a user performing self-photographing.
A relationship between each position and the photographic target area is changed by the movement of an operation terminal, the movement of a third person in the photographic target area, or the operation of the camera. Therefore, it is difficult to apply a method of determining an image region of the part subjected to the low-resolution conversion by the operator to a target except a fixed target.
(4) According to an album preparation support system described in JP 2003-32589 A, when image pickup is performed by a multimedia terminal including an image pickup section and an obtained image is combined with a different related image, an album can be prepared. When a background of a person is removed at the time of image combination, a composite photograph that does not show a third person is realized.
Although this technique is used for performing background replacement and combination processing to obtain the composite photograph that does not show the third person, the composite photograph is not suitable as a commemorative photograph for remembering the situation.
The following are related arts to the present invention.
[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2004-40736 (JP 2004-40736 A)
[Patent document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2005-51552 (JP 2005-51552 A)
[Patent document 3] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-136514 (JP 2001-136514 A)
[Patent document 4] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-32589 (JP 2003-32589 A)